


Beginning / 23a

by chasexjackson



Series: 30 days of prompts [2]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: ....really spaced out 30 days lol, 30 Days of Writing, Dialogue Heavy, F/M, Fluff, Meet-Cute, Strangers to Lovers, based on a twitter thread
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-28
Updated: 2018-07-28
Packaged: 2019-06-17 15:07:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,052
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15464082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chasexjackson/pseuds/chasexjackson
Summary: It had been a joke. A thank you for swapping seats I hope your new neighbour isn’t a creep without any concept of personal space joke. And honestly, Annabeth was asked to swap seats fairly frequently. She usually travelled alone and was more than happy to move to allow couples or parents and children or friends to sit next to one another for the duration of the five and a half hour flight. This couple had been friendly in an energetic way and thanked her genuinely when she switched seats with the husband to sit a row in front. His wife smiled at her and said, “Maybe your new neighbour will be the love of your life.”





	Beginning / 23a

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blackjacktheboss](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blackjacktheboss/gifts).



> Soph shared a twitter thread with me about a couple who met on a plane after one of them swapped seats. when the internet got hold of this they collectively became weird and stalky because people are demons BUT the original story inspired me to write something, so here we are. 
> 
> i'm also posting this as part of my series of prompts which.....has been seriously neglected lmfao

It had been a joke. A  _ thank you for swapping seats I hope your new neighbour isn’t a creep without any concept of personal space _ joke. And honestly, Annabeth was asked to swap seats fairly frequently. She usually travelled alone and was more than happy to move to allow couples or parents and children or friends to sit next to one another for the duration of the five and a half hour flight. This couple had been friendly in an energetic way and thanked her genuinely when she switched seats with the husband to sit a row in front. His wife smiled at her and said, “Maybe your new neighbour will be the love of your life.”

 

Annabeth had laughed along and prayed they just wouldn’t be too sweaty. But then she looked up to see a latecomer shuffling down the aisle as he held his backpack out of the way of people's heads and scanned the seat numbers. Most people were sitting down and the plane was filling up fast. It could be him and-

 

_ fuck _

 

-she hoped it was him. 

 

He was gorgeous. Wearing dark wash jeans and a white t-shirt with a snapback pulled over his head, he was the cutest thing Annabeth had seen in months. He kept on shuffling up the aisle, checking between his phone and the seat numbers, until he finally reached her row and put his phone away, satisfied he’d found his place of residence for the next five and a half hours. He shot her a quick smile before sitting down and stuffing his backpack under the seat in front of him. And god, it was a nice smile. 

 

Annabeth was seriously fearing that she was merging into creep territory, but he smelled really good. Like the ocean, but fresh on a hot Californian beach. Salty and sharp. 

 

For the next fifteen minutes, Annabeth focused all of her energy on remaining in her own space. But the seats weren’t exactly roomy and they were both pretty tall so it was no easy feat. She didn’t even realise they were on the runway until she noticed Percy’s hand gripping the armrest between them with excessive force. 

 

She looked over to see his jaw clenched tight as he stared ahead without blinking. 

 

“You okay?” she asked quietly. 

 

It shocked him out of his staring contest with the back of the seat in front of him. He glanced at her then away again. 

 

“Oh. Um, yeah,” he said. “I’m not a great flier.”

 

“Oh.”

 

“Don’t worry, I’m not gonna chunder on you. I’ll just give myself jaw ache.”

 

Annabeth laughed. They were accelerating up the runway now. 

 

“Hey. Do this.”

 

She opened her mouth wide and circled her lower jaw. 

 

Percy frowned but she figured politeness forced him to follow the instructions of a stranger while he was dwindling towards a panic attack. His jaw clicked satisfyingly before he clamped it shut again. 

 

“Do it again,” she instructed, feeling slightly demanding. 

 

He gave her a look and she nodded. So he did it again. 

 

“Now do this at the same time.” 

 

She held up her hand for him to see and pressed her thumb to the tip of her index finger, then her middle, then her ring, then her little finger. Then she started again. After a second, Percy followed suit, doing it with both hands as he opened and closed his mouth over and over. 

 

She did the same, to help ease some self-consciousness and to encourage him to keep going. She noticed his shoulders drop slowly and the bouncing of his knee slow down and before she knew it, the fasten seatbelt sign had been turned off with a pleasant  _ ding _ around the cabin. 

 

Percy looked shocked to hear it too. He blinked and dropped his hands into his lap. Then he looked at her with an expression of mixed confusion and awe. 

 

“How’d you do that?”

 

Annabeth laughed. “I used to get panic attacks as a kid. It’s good to find a physical distraction. I’m glad it worked?”

 

He laughed. “It definitely worked. I’d be in migraine central by now.”

 

“Well, you’re welcome then.”

 

“Thank you,” he said genuinely. 

 

She nodded. “You gonna be alright for the rest of the flight?”

 

“Hm. Should be. Take off and landing are always the worst.”

 

“So I hear.”

 

“You don’t get nervous at all?”

 

She shook her head. “There’s thousands of dollars of very sound engineering all around us, I trust it. It’s actually the safest mode of transportation; you’re far more likely to die in a car accident.”

 

“I’m aware.”

 

She cringed. “Sorry, you’ve been told that a million times huh?”

 

“People love to pull out the statistics while I’m having a panic attack. It’s fun.”

 

“Sorry.”

 

He shook his head. “Hey, it’s fine. I’m being an ass.”

 

She laughed. “Nah, you’re fine.”

 

He looked at her for a moment, eyes all soft and mouth curved into a timid smile. The expression in his face felt strangely familiar, like he’d looked at her that way a hundred times, though she just met him less than a half hour ago. Rachel would tell her that their souls knew each other from a past life. Annabeth didn’t believe in that sort of thing. 

 

But she could swear she’d seen him before. 

 

“I’m Annabeth,” she said, aware he didn’t know this. 

 

He smiled and held out his hand. “Percy. What takes you to New York?”

 

“Home. I was visiting my family in San Francisco.”

 

“Oh you’re from here then?”

 

“Well, technically.”

 

He laughed. “Okay. Explain that to me.”

 

She rolled her eyes - mostly at herself - and sighed. “It’s kind of a long story.”

 

He shrugged. “We’ve got a long flight. I mean, you don’t have to tell me if it’s personal and I’m being an ass again.”

 

She smiled. “No you’re fine. I uh, I first ran away from home when I was seven.”

 

Percy sat up straighter. “Jeez, alright. Should we get some drinks, or…?”

 

She elbowed him, laughing. “No it’s fine. It gets less dramatic, I swear.”

 

And honestly, she wasn’t sure why she felt quite so comfortable telling him this. It usually took a few weeks or even months of knowing someone before she’d start spilling her life story. But Percy just made her feel strangely at ease, like she could trust him. She didn’t even know his last name. 

 

Maybe they’d put something in the air con system. 

 

“Well I um, I ran away. Not because I was being abused or anything awful I just. I just didn’t feel part of my family. My birth mom wasn’t around and my dad remarried and had two other kids and I felt kind of….separate from them all. My dad isn’t exactly the most affectionate person in the world and I think my step-mom just struggled to connect with me.”

 

“Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out.”

 

She shrugged. “I’ve done some soul searching, I suppose. I was mostly angry then and hurt and mad. And I thought if I found my mom then she would look after me better.”

 

“Did she?”

 

“I’m some ways. I never really found out though.”

 

Percy tilted his head. He was very close, there was that lovely smell of him again. Rough and warm all at once. 

 

“Why’s that?” he asked her, jolting her out of her creepy trance. 

 

“I uh. I didn’t find her. I barely made it out of California before they picked me up that time.”

 

“Oh, there was more than one attempt?”

 

She laughed. “Yes, several. I don’t know the actual number.”

 

“Jeez. So did you ever meet your mom?” He cringed. “Sorry, tell me if I’m getting too personal. My mom says I’m too nosey.”

 

Maybe he was, but he was so charming that he could get away with it. She wouldn’t be surprised if his mom thought the same thing. 

 

“It’s fine honestly. I’ll tell you if you’re over a line.”

 

“Maybe we should have a safe word.”

 

She bit her lip, trying desperately not to let her mind go there. “Alright what’s our safe word?”

 

“Erm. Bananahammock.”

 

She stared at him. “....Okay.”

 

“What! We’re not gonna accidentally slip that into conversation are we?”

 

“I don’t know, you haven’t heard the rest of my story yet.”

 

He laughed and good god Annabeth’s heart might actually combust at the crinkly skin around his eyes and his sharp teeth. She felt warm in her belly, all the way through. 

 

“Well colour me intrigued.” He nodded for her to continue. 

 

“Oh god, where was I?”

 

“Erm. I asked if you met your mom?”

 

“Right. Well, eventually my dad had enough of me running away and took me to New York to meet her.”

 

“Did she live up to your expectations?” he asked, sounding like he already knew the answer. 

 

“I don’t know if she did or didn’t. I honestly had no idea of what she would be like.”

 

He nodded, staying quiet. 

 

“She’s a CEO,” Annabeth explained. “She told me she wanted me to have a family and didn’t think she could be that for me, that’s why she left me with my dad. And I wasn’t mad. I think I was in awe of her then.”

 

“You’re not anymore?”

 

“No, I am. I am. I think I missed her being in my life so much that I pushed away anyone who could have filled that spot, you know?”

 

He nodded. “I get that?”

 

“Oh? What about your parents?”

 

He let out a breath. “It’s just me and my mom. I’ve never met my dad but honestly, I’ve never needed to. She’s always been enough.”

 

“That sounds nice.”

 

He smiled. “Yeah. She’s awesome. She’s a writer, you know?” he gushed. She loved that. 

 

“Oh yeah, anything I would know?”

 

“Maybe. She writes crime thrillers.”

 

“That’s cool. Not really my thing though,” she said apologetically. 

 

He shook his head as if to say, _ it’s fine _ . “What is your thing?”

 

“I don’t read a lot of fiction, to be honest. I’m really interested in ancient history - the Romans and Greeks and Egyptians, you know?”

 

“Oh cool. You’d get along with my mom’s boyfriend.”

 

“Oh yeah?”

 

“Mhm. He’s a history teacher. Such a nerd.”

 

He said it so fondly that she suspected there was a good bond there. Though she’d only met him an hour ago, she imagined it was difficult for Percy not to get along with anybody. 

 

“My dad loves history too. He’s obsessed with World War Two planes, has a massive collection of them.”

 

“What does he do?”

 

“He’s a history professor.”

 

“Very cool. And your step-mom?”

 

“She’s an event planner.”

 

“You mentioned half-siblings?”

 

“Mhm. They’re twins, both in high school still.”

 

Percy nodded. They were interrupted then by the drinks trolley and Annabeth bought a bottle of water for an extortionate price while Percy bought some equally expensive chips for them to share. 

 

“So how did New York become home?” he asked around a mouthful of chips. 

 

Annabeth raised her eyebrows at him and he swallowed, looking bashful. She smirked. 

 

“Well after I finally met my mom, I agreed to go back to live with my dad but I wanted to see her more.”

 

“And you got your own way?”

 

“I can be very persuasive. Even at the age of ten.”

 

He laughed. “You know, I believe you.”

 

She grinned, ducking her chin. “Well, a friend of my mom’s runs a summer camp just outside the city and my parents agreed for me to go every summer. I got to visit my mom every weekend and I fell in love with the city while I was there. So when it came to applying for college, it’s the only place I wanted to go.”

 

“That’s so cool. Which college did you go to?”

 

“Columbia. I finished up my post-grad there last year.”

 

Percy raised his eyebrows, impressed. “Damn. What did you study? And the all important question: are you using your degree?”

 

Annabeth laughed. “Now might be a good time for the safe word. No, I’m kidding. I studied architecture and yes I’m using it. I work for a firm downtown.”

 

“I’m impressed.”

 

“Thanks. What about you?”

 

“Oh. Banana hammock! Nah I’m joking. I work in conservation of marine biology. That’s why I was in San Francisco, actually. We’re trying to link up with a lab there to share research.”

 

“That’s…a really cool job,” she said genuinely. “How did you get into that?”

 

He blew out a breath between his lips. “I’ve always loved the ocean. My mom used to take me up to the beach in Montauk since I was little and I’d spend all the time in the water and picking up shells off the beach.”

 

“Cute.”

 

“I was a very cute kid.”

 

“I believe you.” She really did. 

 

He smiled and she didn’t miss the blush on his cheeks. 

 

“So how did sea shells become a career choice?”

 

“Uh well, I had some really good teachers who got me interested in biology. I mean, I had some awful teachers too and I um. I didn’t have the best school record, but those teachers helped me focus on something I was actually passionate about, you know?”

 

She nodded. “I do. So you were a troublemaker, huh?”

 

He looked down at his lap, abashed. “Well, a little. I have ADHD so that probably didn’t help.”

 

“Seriously?”

 

Percy raised his eyebrows. “Uh yeah.”

 

“So do I.”

 

“No way.”

 

“Yeah. I mean it was diagnosed quite late, I think because it looks different in girls than boys, but it made things easier going into high school knowing what was going on in my head.”

 

“I know the feeling. And teachers didn’t just throw you into detention for staring out the window. Well. At least some of them didn’t.”

 

Annabeth laughed. “God. I had this one witch of a teacher. Everytime I bounced my knee she’d throw me out of the classroom and I tried to explain it to her, but she didn’t care. She’d say I just needed to learn self control.”

 

“God. What an ass.”

 

“She was. God I hated her guts.”

 

“I had this one teacher in middle school though, who I loved. He didn’t teach biology but he actually made me give a shit about class. I don’t know how he did it because I hated everything about that school at that time. But he took his time with me, you know? He taught me like it was a matter of life and death.” He laughed. 

 

“What was his subject?”

 

“Ancient history and Latin.”

 

Annabeth gave him a look.

 

“I know, I know,” Percy said. “It wasn’t a fancy school though, I swear. It was actually a boarding school.” At Annabeth’s raised eyebrow, he shrugged. “I told you, I was a troublemaker. That was probably my sixth school.”

 

“Jesus.”

 

“Yeah, if Mr Brunner hadn’t come along when he did then I’d have gone through a lot more.”

 

“Wait. Mr Brunner?”

 

Percy nodded. “Yeah, why?”

 

“Dark haired dude in a wheelchair. Speaks like he’s a damn prophet.”

 

Percy looked at her wide eyed. “Uh yeah,” he said slowly. “How’d you know that?”

 

Annabeth laughed. “You know that friend of my mom’s I mentioned?”

 

“Mr Brunner?!”

 

“Yeah!”

 

“Fuck. Is that camp called, oh god what was it? Camp Blood something.”

 

Annabeth laughed. “Camp Half Blood.”

 

“Yes! Jeez, he tried to get me to go there, but my mom wanted me at home during summer cause I was away during the school year.”

 

“Damn. We could have been little best friends.”

 

“We could have. What a small world.”

 

She returned his smile, feeling the fondness burst out of her. “Seems like something wanted us to meet anyway.”

 

He nodded. “I’m glad it did.”

 

And god, he couldn’t just say things like that. Something was doing somersaults in her belly as he looked at her with nothing but softness. It was all too much. Too many words and too much familiarity and too much fondness. All with someone she didn’t know at all. 

 

But then again, she felt like she knew him so well already. Like maybe. 

 

Maybe their souls had met before. 

 

* * *

  
  


The rest of the flight goes much the same way. They show each other pictures of their dogs and their close friends, in that order, and before she knew it Percy was getting anxious again. 

 

She did the same exercises with him again, watching proudly as he steadied his breathing and offering a hand when the landing part came. He took it and she could tell he was working hard not to break any bones. Maybe that was a good distraction too. A few small bumps and a short cruise along the tarmac and then the pilot was announcing the local time and turning off the seatbelt sign. 

 

“Well done,” Annabeth told Percy, meaning it. 

 

He huffed a laugh. “Thanks. I think that was the smoothest landing I’ve done for a very long time. Thank you.”

 

She smiled. “You’re very welcome, Percy.”

 

Without saying so, they sort of move seamlessly together through the disembarking process. When Percy handed her suitcase to her and returned to the overhead storage to get his, Annabeth caught the eye of the lady behind her and tried not to go too red at hers and her partner’s expressions. Smug and slightly impressed would be her description. She tried not to think about them overhearing her gushing to Percy for the whole flight and returned Percy’s smile when he looked at her again. 

 

They left the plane together and he asked whether she had more luggage to pick up, and when she said no, he smiled and started looking for exit signs. They were leaving together. She felt all at once like this was an active decision and something she was simply letting happen. On the plane they had been forced next to each other and required to remain in that space for several hours. Now they were back in the real world - or were about to be, as soon as they stepped outside of the air conditioned, overpriced-coffee shop filled building. They were about to go their separate ways, but continued walking together. For just a moment, as they were navigating the crowds, she felt Percy’s hand lightly on her lower back and the intimacy of the gesture made her heart race double time.

 

She didn’t even know where he was going. She knew he lived in Manhatten, but she had no idea where and her first step would be getting the airtrain. She should probably start there.

 

“So, um, I need to get the airtrain. Do you…?”

 

Percy looked over at her and nodded. “Yeah, that’s where I figured we were heading?”

 

Right, he was already one step ahead of her. She wasn’t sure how that made her feel. Happy, that he wanted to continue their contact, disoriented, that she wasn’t the one taking the lead.

 

“Alright,” she said, and made her steps more decisive towards the platform. 

 

They bought their tickets and she tried to control her smile as Percy fidgeted while they waited for the train. He couldn’t stand still for a second, eyes darting all over and fingers tapping on the handle of his suitcase, shifting his weight every few seconds. She thought  _ she _ was fidgety. 

 

“So,” she broke the calm silence which wasn’t really silence with all the noise of the platform around them. “Nobody to pick you up at the airport?”

 

He looked over at her with a raied eyebrow, shaking his head. “I’m a big boy.”

 

“Oh?”

 

“You neither?”

 

“No, I’m a big boy too.”

 

He laughed, that gorgeous laugh and Annabeth had to kick herself for being so enamoured. 

 

“You, um.” She swallowed. “You got any plans after this?”

 

Percy shook his head, watching her. “You?”

 

She shook her head too and the corner of Percy’s mouth lifted.

 

“So, um. You wanna get something to eat?” She made sure to make eye contact when she asked him and watched his smile grow delightedly, butterflies bumping around in her belly.

 

“That would be great,” he told her, nodding and smiling while Annabeth’s own smile took over her face.

 

“Great,” she echoed, feeling kiddy like a teenager whose prom date just said yes.

 

The train arrived then and Percy was careful to let her board first and helped her wedge their cases against the side of the carriage. They stood next to a pole and both gripped it as the train moved off. The carriage was unpleasantly full and sweaty, but they would only be aboard for fifteen minutes or so before they could change at Penn Station. 

 

As they stood there, in each other spaces and swaying slightly with the movement of the train, Annabeth felt Percy’s hand touch her own. He moved away again, like it was accidental. But a moment later, their fingers touched again and he stayed. And, holding her breath in her chest, Annabeth moved to losely link their fingers together. Percy’s eye caught hers and he smiled sheepishly as he squeezed her fingers as if to say,  _ I won’t let go if you won’t _ .

 

And she didn’t plan to, any time soon.

 

* * *

 

**One year later.**

 

Annabeth sat in the window seat, watching the flaps on the wings of the plane move up and down as they were tested. She looked back up at Percy, who stood in the aisle next to her and returned her smile as his fingers tapped on the back of the seat. They were some of the first to board so most of the seats around them were still vacant.

 

“I think this is them,” he said, looking away from her down the aisle of the plane. 

 

A short black woman with a backpack was scanning the seat numbers and, affirming Percy’s assumptions, stopped by their row.

 

“Hi,” Percy said. “Is this your seat?” He pointed at the one next to Annabeth.

 

“Yeah,” she said and didn’t sound too hesitant, making Annabeth hopeful that she wasn’t going to be that person who refused to swap seats.

 

Percy smiled. “Is there any chance we could swap? Mine is just here in front and I’d love to sit next to my girlfriend.”

 

Annabeth smiled and waved on cue.

 

The woman smiled back. “Of course, no problem. Is it the middle one?”

 

“Yeah, you want help with your bag?”

 

“Oh thank you.”

 

Percy lifted the hefty backpack into the overhead locker and smiled at the woman again when he was done.

 

“Thanks again.”

 

“Not a problem.”

 

Annabeth caught her eye. “And hey, you never know, you might sit next to the love of your life.”

 

The woman laughed and lifted her crossed fingers. “Here’s hoping. I’m not sure that’s ever happened though.”

 

As Percy buckled up next to her, Annabeth smiled at the woman. “Oh, I have.”

 

The woman simply raised her eyebrows before taking her seat.

 

As the plane filled up and cabin crew began their checks, Percy’s hand found hers and his thumb started making circles on her skin. 

 

“Love of your life, huh?” he whispered.

 

She looked at him. “Eh, you’re okay I guess.”

 

He laughed. “Thanks.”

 

She leaned over and pecked his lips. “I’m very glad I met you,” she said quietly, still against his mouth.

 

“Me too. I’m glad it was me you swapped seats to sit next to.”

 

“You make that sound like I swapped seats with the intention of sitting next to you.”

 

“Well, didn’t you?”

 

“Oh yeah, I’d been stalking you for like a year before. You though that was a coincidence. How cute.”

 

“I can’t believe this.”

 

“I’m sorry you had to find out this way.”

 

He grinned. “I’ll get over it.”

 

“Good, cause I aint going anywhere.”

 

“Good.”

 

As the plane made it’s way towards the runway, Percy’s leg started bouncing. He’d not gotten over his fear of flying, but he’d gotten a hell of a lot better at dealing with it. Annabeth held onto his hand and opened her jaw with him, smiling at him as she closed it. He always told her that he was still scared, terrified even, but she made it easier. She made him feel like he wasn’t alone in the fear.

 

And, well, he made her feel that way too.


End file.
